Volume 6, Issue 3 (October 1984)

This paper discusses a simple model to study low velocity transverse impact of thin plates made of fiber-reinforced composite material, in particular, T300/5208 graphite-epoxy. This model predicts the coefficient of restitution, which is a measure of the energy absorbed by the target during an impact event. The model is constructed on the assumption that the plate is inextensible in the fiber direction and that the material is incompressible in the z direction. Such a plate essentially deforms by shear, hence, this model neglects bending deformations of the plate. The coefficient of restitution is predicted to increase with large interlaminar shear strength and low transverse shear modulus of the laminate.

Predictions are compared with the test results of impacted circular and rectangular clamped plates. Experimentally measured values of the coefficient of restitution are found to agree with the predicted values within a reasonable error.